Old-time rodeo in Etna on Saturday

A small-town rodeo full of fun and excitement for folks both young and old alike is in store for those who head to Etna on Saturday for the Scott Valley Pleasure Park 37th Annual Old Time Rodeo.

The festivities begin at 8 a.m. with the rodeo slack. The pre-rodeo, which features kid and junior events, begins at 4 p.m. At 5 p.m. the main rodeo is set to take place with favorites like bull and bronc riding, barrel racing and calf roping.

Admission is free for those 3 and under, kids from 4-to-12 are $5, adults are $10 and seniors 65 and over are $5.

"It's a fun rodeo," said Laurie Tippit, who does public relations for the pleasure park. "People usually tell us they have a blast."

Before 2010, the rodeo had participants from Siskiyou County taking part. Since that time, the rodeo is now "open to the world," with rodeo participants from throughout Northern California and Oregon taking part, Tippit said. The reason for the move, she said, was to attract more folks to compete and attend the rodeo, and the change has proven to be successful.

A favorite is the bull riding competition, where riders test their skills and see if they can hold on for the required 8 seconds.

"It's always a popular event at all the rodeos," Tippit said.

An unique part of the festivities is the Wild Saddle Cow event.

This is where saddles are put on cows and participants attempt to ride them. It is an irrelevant part of the rodeo where folks are encouraged to be different. There have been some wild costumes in the past, Tippit said, such as two women dressed in bridal wear. And there was the time where two gentleman dressed up as Peter Pan and Tinkerbell.

Tippit said this is a fun event that gets a lot of laughs each year.

Prizes are given for the best costume, so it should be interesting to see what crazy things people come up with this year.

And, of course, there is the kids and Jr. rodeo, which features mutton busting, which is where youngsters try to test their mettle riding sheep.

It's a great way for the next generation of rodeo riders to get an early head start, Tippit said.

After the rodeo, there will be a dance in the dirt located around the concession stand area. The event is properly named, since there's just dirt around the arena, Tippit said, which makes for a fun and unique dancing experience.

The other big rodeo in Etna takes place in May with the annual Scott Valley Pleasure Park Rodeo. This past year was the 66th time the event was held.